I'm only commenting on the Garlic question. The larger the pieces that garlic is sliced into, the milder the flavor is going to be. Hence, chopped garlic will have a stronger flavor since there is more surface area exposed to air. Perhaps you would like the flavor and less lingering effects of roasted garlic more. When roasted it becomes almost sweet, and is delicious just spread on crackers or bruscetta. Also, doesn't seem to leave that lingering "garlic breath".

Steve

Bananas are high in sugar. People who are trying to reduce are encouraged to eat things that are less sugary. Bananas are also high in potassium, as you know re your leg cramps, fiber and other nutrients. If you don't have sugar issues and can reduce sugar elsewhere if you want to lose weight, there's nothing wrong with bananas. BTW, oranges have even more potassium, but they're sugary too.

When something tastes icky to me, I always check to make sure I'm not allergic to it. If you don't have a fish allergy, it may be that the fish you're getting isn't fresh (as in reality fresh) enough. "Fresh" by legal definition means never frozen. Flash frozen fish is often fresher than fresh fish because the proteins haven't started to degrade by the time it gets to you. It could have other quality issues, like freezer burn, or mushiness after thawing, but it probably won't be stinky and icky tasting.

Site cooked/preserved fish, like canned tuna or smoked and vacuum packed trout or salmon, is also less likely to icky. The best thing you can do is get freshly caught fish straight from an ocean, lake or river. Get to know the fishermen and where and when to get your fish--and make sure the fish are sustainable and from a source that isn't dangerously polluted. Also, if you cook it yourself you can make sure the flavors you add are ones you like. If you don't have any local fish, that's your problem. It's at least three days dead before you see it. Maybe try supplements instead.

Wondered what you mean by garlic breath. Do you notice this on yourself or on others? I admit I never notice garlic on anyone but I do notice coffee breath. I love garlic and it is good for you! I wonder if the freshness of the garlic makes a difference.

While I don't eat them, just never acquired a taste for it, bananas go like crazy in my house. To see people buying them at the store I think there are many banana lovers out there so I would say if it helps you with cramps, no reason to stop.

Fish. Salmon seems to be the only fish I can cook at home that smells good and tastes good. It is expensive. With good fish you should not have to cover up the flavor. I just sprinkle salt, pepper, and olive oil on salmon and broil it. I know you are watching your sodium levels but you need to consider how much you use in a day, not just in one meal, for some food salt is important to the flavor.

I'm not a fan of fishy fish but I find I have no trouble with mild fish like cod or mahi mahi or haddock. Unless it's very fresh, I find even salmon very fishy. If it's less than fresh it will get fishier. I always smell the smell of a fish store...if it's fresh fish, it won't smell fishy...if it smells fishy, it's not fresh. I agree with plllog that frozen fish can be fresher...meaning better preserved than unfrozen.

You might try milk poached cod sometime...the milk helps remove the fishy taste and poaching it keeps it very moist.

Here is a link that might be useful: Cod with lemon butter sauce

1.) I think people who love garlic and use it regularly are accustomed to it aren't bothered by garlic. BUT, there is also such a thing as an intolerance to foods high in sulfur - including garlic and onions. I tend to avoid garlic all together, and a number of other sulfur-containing foods, especially the older I get. I understand this can be genetic because my mother had the same issues with high-sulfur foods, including allergy to eggs, which are also high-sulfur.

If I eat something with even a little garlic in it, my body doesn't convert it well. I taste it for several unpleasant hours. When I tried to incorporate more garlic in my diet for the health benefits, all I did was suffer with that awful taste in my mouth. It's not indigestion, it's just a lingering horrible taste.

2.) Here is a list of 10 foods highest in potassium, with bananas coming in at #10.
http://www.healthaliciousness.com/articles/food-sources-of-potassium.php
Beans, dark leafy greens, potatoes, squash, yogurt, fish, avocados, mushrooms, and bananas.

3.) If you use canned tuna, choose solid white albacore tuna in water. Place the tuna in a strainer or sieve and rinse it well under cold running water. I do this if hubby is going to eat it because he's not a fan of fish. I also think mustard is another good fishy-flavor detractor.

-Grainlady

Skip the banannas due to the high sugar, and if you suffer from those nasty leg cramps try tonic water! My Dad swore by the stuff!

I agree that bananas are not the highest food in potassium, so if you eat a baked potato with the peel, you'll get more potassium than that. I don't eat bananas, they are just too mushy, but fortunately I love potatoes, leafy greens and all kinds of beans.

I don't have the answer for the garlic breath as I haven't experienced that, but I tend to use garlic sparingly, not with as heavy a hand as many others. Also, as Steve mentioned, chopped or minced garlic will taste much stronger than sliced garlic or whole cloves that you can then fish out of your food later, if you like.

Fish. Ah, you like it or you don't, I guess. I love the stuff, although I also find salmon to be one of the stronger flavored fish. I don't care for many of the ocean fishes, like ocean perch, and I'm not a fan of tilapia, as it's always a bit too soft and mushy for my taste. I like cod, it's an extremely mild fish, and halibut is one of my favorites. I mostly like the lake fish, though, such as walleye, blue gill, lake perch. To me the lake fish are milder than most of the ocean fishes.

Annie

Thank you so much for your quick comments. I use the garlic powder a lot in my cooking, but the fresh garlic is what gets me. I'm sure that I would prefer the roasted garlic, but I don't always have the big oven on since it is just me. If I eat out, I love the garlic mashed potatoes. I had a very dear friend that would eat lunch with me and when she used a garlic salad dressing, it would almost make me sick. The smell lasted forever.

I agree about the bananas but it seemed that if I didn't eat at least half. I do keep a bottle of the tonic water on hand if I have a bad night which doesn't happen often. I have rheumatoid arthritis in my feet though and lots of calcium . You just learn to put up with some of this stuff.

The fish. I live in the Midwest. Nuff said. I have found some canned salmon that is low sodium, but there doesn't seem to be any low sodium tuna. If I have some eating out, I usually peel all of the outside off and bring it home to my always hungry cat.

I do so appreciate all of your imput. You never disappoint me. Barb

FWIW, I find fresh garlic to be far milder & less 'stinky' than powdered or granulated - & doesn't it lose more of its benefits , the more it's cooked?

Here we have tuna canned in brine, and tuna canned in spring water. The spring water has less salt. I used to buy it for our elderly cat with kidney issues as she loved canned tuna.
Like Annie, I find cod nice and mild. DH loves fish and I don't. I let him cook fresh salmon (which is very "fishy") for himself at his place (we live apart on weekdays due to his job in the city) and at home I cook cod from time to time.

I know what you mean. I eat plenty of a lot of things that are supposedly high in potassium, but it's not always enough. Supplements are a bad way to get potassium, so I have a small serving of orange juice and a banana most days and I don't have issues. It does squeeze out most other fruit, though. :( I'm not sure if this list of amounts are adjusted for what actually make a relevant presence in your bloodstream.

Cramps are almost always due to magnesium deficiency, and not too long ago a doctor who was an expert on magnesium said on the People's Pharmacy that 80% of Americans are deficient in magnesium. The best type of magnesium to take is M. citrate, a powder that you mix with liquid.

Also, when you eat sugary fruit, the fruit itself slows down the sugar absorption so it's not bad for you, unless, of course, you were eating vast quantities of it and nothing else. What's REALLY bad is fruit juice, especially orange juice, which is like drinking pure sugar.

Bananas are high in potassium. It's why your legs hurt when you don't have them. Sounds like you need to keep this one up!

Here is a link that might be useful: potassium and leg cramps

The oily fishes are best for health. I eat salmon patties made out of canned salmon. Canned salmon usually comes from the Pacific Coast which is less likely to be contaminated with toxins. I also eat sardines and canned tuna. You can spice up the salmon or tuna patties in a variety of ways to disguise the taste. I also eat tuna and sardines with pasta, and use tomato sauce and cheese to mask the taste. We love Italian style fish soup made with a can of stewed tomatoes and some little star shaped pastas in it. Again, topped with some Parmesan cheese. I mix tuna with canned spaghetti sauce and some capers or olives, and then put it on spaghetti with generous Parm. cheese topping! Seems like I have a parmesan cheese theme going here! I also mix funa or salmon into salads with all kinds of dressings, and top with sunflower seeds. My friend makes a topping for her fish with ground walnuts. I also love fish stuffed with spinach and cheese, and also shrimp. A cream sauce is great over something like that. I also have kedgeree for dinner sometimes, which is potatoes, hard boiled eggs and sardines (or other fish) with a curry flavor. You can mix some tomato or other veggies in it if you like. If you don't care for curry though, you might not like it. You can also make "insalata russa" which is a Spanish tapas dish of potato salad that has fish in with it. Usually also eggs, peas and sometimes diced carrots. And then there's always tuna noodle casserole!!

Try eating parsley after a garlicky meal. Parsley takes away the garlic breath.

Sally

Tonic water that has quinine is to be avoided depending on any prescriptions you take. Ask a pharmacist before doing quinine.